Coming Back
by RebeccaC
Summary: Another post-“The Telling” story, I know we all have our ideas about it. Syd and Vaughn talk as they head back from Hong Kong.


Coming Back  
  
Another post-"The Telling" story, I know we all have our ideas about it. Don't know if this is really what I think happened or not, but I had to do something while we're waiting till next fall :)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Alias, I just like to think about it a lot. So sue me.well actually don't, I can't afford that :)  
  
Hope you enjoy! Please R/R!  
  
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"Vaughn?"  
  
"We thought you were dead. They asked me to come back to... to explain."  
  
"Come back from what? What are you talking about?"  
  
Vaughn rubs at his face with his left hand. On that hand is a wedding ring.  
  
"Vaughn...why are you wearing that ring?"  
  
"Syd...since that night...you were missing. You've been missing for almost two years."  
  
"What??" Sydney stares at him. "Vaughn, what's going on? What do you mean?"  
  
"Sydney, it's been two years since you disappeared, since that night we were supposed to go away to Santa Barbara. All we could figure was that you were dead, otherwise we would have at least heard something, gotten some clues that you were out there somewhere."  
  
"So, what, you just gave up on me like that?? Just forgot about me?"  
  
"Syd, listen.we." Vaughn couldn't look at her. "Look, they sent me to come get you. There's a plane waiting. We can talk once we get there, I just have to get you out of here."  
  
"Where are we going?" she asked as he stood up and offered to help her. She ignored his hand.  
  
"We're going back to LA for now. Kendall will want to see you."  
  
Sydney silently follows him out of the room and outside to a waiting car. Vaughn opens the passenger door for Sydney and then walks around to get in the driver's seat. He looks over at her before he starts the car.  
  
"It is good to see you."  
  
She looks up at him, the sad/shocked look still on her face. He does his best to smile at her, but can only manage a half smile. She tries not to meet his gaze, but can't avoid his eyes. *Those eyes I used to get lost in,* she remembers. They seem slightly dulled by tears. *Or maybe it's just dark out here.* She can't help sending a sad smile his way. Vaughn starts the car and they start to move.  
  
"Vaughn? I."  
  
"Not now. We'll be there soon."  
  
They drive a short distance, and soon come to a plane waiting for them. Vaughn gets Sydney settled into her seat and goes to the back of the plane. He doesn't return until after they have taken off.  
  
"Ok," he says as he sits down next to her, "now we can talk."  
  
"So if no one knew where I was for two years.where was I?? I had to be somewhere, didn't I? What's happened since I've been gone?"  
  
"Well, Sloane and your mother have been remarkably quiet since you disappeared. I mean, we have had a few leads on them, but they almost always fall through."  
  
"And you and my father just let that happen?! Why didn't you keep pursuing it?"  
  
Vaughn is silent for a moment. He takes a deep breath and looks up at her watching him. "Syd.your father.we don't know where he is right now. I think he may be with your mother and Sloane. The last time we saw him, he was going on a mission by himself because he thought he had a lead on Sloane. He just never came back."  
  
"How long ago was this?" Sydney asks in disbelief.  
  
"Several months ago. Must be 6 or 7 months by now. He was so upset when you disappeared. All he wanted was revenge on Sloane, and I had no doubt in my mind he would do what he could to get revenge."  
  
"So you don't know what happened to him?"  
  
"No. I'm afraid Sloane and your mother may have gotten him to unwillingly help them by threatening your safety."  
  
Sydney's head shot up and she looked up at him with questioning eyes. "What, you think I was with them too?"  
  
Vaughn shrugged his shoulders. "It's the only thing I've come up with. With Sloane finally having all the Rambaldi pieces, who knows what he could be doing with it."  
  
Sydney leans back in her seat, lost in thought. "Do we know anything about the Rambaldi machine?"  
  
"Your father mentioned that Sloane had called it 'The Telling'. That's all I've heard about it."  
  
"The Telling," Sydney repeats. She's turning this over in her mind when she remembers something. "Vaughn.you never told me why you were wearing a wedding ring." Her voice falters as she asks this. She fights to hold back sudden tears. "You said they asked you to come back.what were you coming back from?"  
  
*I can't do this,* he thinks to himself. He looks at her pleading face and wishes that it were two years earlier and they were still happily together. *I have to tell her, even if it hurts us both.*  
  
"Syd.when you disappeared, I.I kinda freaked out. I.just went crazy. I kept telling myself we would find you. We kept looking and everything turned out to be a dead end. I didn't want to give up.You know how crazy Dixon acted when his wife was killed?" Sydney nodded. "That was me, only.well I don't want to say even more so, because I know how much he loved his wife, but, let me just say, I finally understood that he couldn't help but act that way. Kendall blew up at me, said there was no reason for me to be so emotional. He sent me away. He set me up with a wife and sent us to Missouri so I could 'recover'."  
  
Sydney's heart leapt. "Set you up with a wife? What's that supposed to mean, you're not really married?!"  
  
"Hang on a sec, let me keep going."  
  
Sydney's heart sunk again. *Can't he just tell me whether or not he's married!! Why is he dodging the subject?!* She took a deep breath. "Ok, keep going."  
  
"Thanks. Look this is hard for me to get out too, but it needs to be said." Sydney nodded. "Ok, so Kendall sent us to Missouri. And he forbid me from contacting him! I thought I was going to go crazy if I didn't have information." Vaughn realizes he's almost shouting. He takes a deep breath and keeps going. "I wanted to stay in LA and keep looking for you, but no way he was going to let that happen. So I sort of.I guess you could say.rebelled."  
  
"What did you do?"  
  
"Well I almost.Syd.I almost.killed my wife. I mean my, the woman who was pretending to be my wife."  
  
Sydney gasps, then realizes what else he said. *'The woman who was pretending to be my wife.' He's not really married!* Then the seriousness of what he said sunk in and she returned her attention to him.  
  
"What happened?" Sydney asked cautiously.  
  
"She was just driving me insane!! She was so excited that she got to play husband and wife with me and she wanted to really get into it. Make everyone believe we really were married. I had no interest in indulging that girl's fantasies. So I was mad, annoyed, frustrated that I couldn't help look for you, who knows what else. And I almost let it go too far. When I realized what I was doing, I left, I came back to LA and tried to talk to Kendall. He told me to grow up and get over it and sent me right back. He's already pretty much taken my agent status away and is threatening to get me kicked out of the CIA entirely. He says 'If you can't fix this situation, Mr. Vaughn, I assure you, I will have to take action. I'm trying to protect you now by keeping this quiet.' So I went back to Missouri."  
  
He stops and rubs his forehead. Sydney puts her hand on his arm. "Are you okay?" she asks.  
  
He nods and looks down at her hand on his arm. Somehow just a simple touch from this woman can make him feel so much better. He sighs and, almost subconsciously, covers her hand with his own as he continues.  
  
"Of course when I went back, my 'wife' was scared to death of me.I mean.I guess I shouldn't say it that way...but she was. But I had to keep her from running off, I had to keep up the ruse of being married, Kendall's orders. I felt so guilty for what I had done, how I had treated her, but I still had to face her every day. I didn't know what to do. Luckily it was only 2 weeks later when Kendall got in contact with me and sent me here to get you. I'm amazed he let me come, especially by myself, I'm so deep in trouble with the Agency."  
  
Sydney was struggling to listen, his hand on hers was so distracting. She forced her mind back. "So now what?" she asked.  
  
"Well, we go back to LA, talk to Kendall, you go through intensive tests, and I'll probably get sent away again, since my career is pretty much ruined."  
  
"Vaughn.there has to be something I can do, something that can change all this."  
  
"I don't know, Syd. Maybe if we knew where Sloane and your mother were, and what they were doing."  
  
"Do you think they're in Hong Kong, is that why I ended up there?" Sydney started getting animated. "Maybe we shouldn't have left so soon, maybe we should go back, see what we can find out.maybe we sh."  
  
"Syd, we've gotta go back to LA first. Then maybe we can come back.or maybe you can come back, I doubt I'll be authorized to go anywhere."  
  
"But Vaughn, they could be here and they're gonna get away, they'll go somewhere else where we don't have any leads. Vaughn, we can't let that happen again!"  
  
"Syd.we.I.we can't do that right now. Listen, just get some rest, you're gonna have a lot to deal with when we get back."  
  
Vaughn starts to get up and leave her. Sydney stands up too, but sits down again when her head starts to pound.  
  
"Vaughn.Michael.stay with me. Please? I need you to stay."  
  
He looks at her. *There is nothing I'd rather do. Am I allowed? I don't even care, this is probably the last time I'll get to spend time with her. Plus.she needs me.she needs me!* She can see the battle going on in his eyes, but he finally decides to sit back down next to her. She leans her head back on the seat and reaches for his hand resting on the armrest between them.  
  
"Vaughn.I'm glad it was you that came to get me."  
  
He threads his fingers through hers and leans his head back on the seat as well.  
  
Sydney closes her eyes and lets her mind drift.  
  
**Flashback**  
  
"Get off of the ledge!!" Sydney yells at her mother.  
  
"Sloane believes he's been chosen to realize the word of Rambaldi. But you, too, have been chosen," Irina replies.  
  
"If you think I'm bluffing..."  
  
"It's you in the prophecy, Sydney, not me. Only you can stop him." She smiles at her daughter. "Good luck, sweetheart."  
  
**End Flashback**  
  
Sydney sits up straight, causing Vaughn to sit up as well. "'Only you can stop him.' That's what she said. And then she jumped off of the building. What the heck is that supposed to mean?!"  
  
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That's all for now.I may work on more if I have time later today :) Please lemme know what you think!! I appreciate any comments :) 


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